“The passion that Meredith Hodges feels for the equines that she has fought for all her adult life is still as fresh, inspiring and infectious as it was when she first discovered the world of horses, donkeys and mules. She has never wavered in her devotion to them and in her mission to carve a lasting and honored place for them in our world. They are lucky to have her as their champion, but Meredith actually sees it a bit differently. She feels honored and privileged to be a part of their world.”
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Merry Christmas From Lucky Three Ranch!
MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM ALL OF US AT THE LUCKY THREE RANCH TO ALL OF OUR FAMILY, FRIENDS & FANS.
Click here https://youtu.be/9rGWCwvw2bs for a special video gift for you. Wishing you all the best now and in the years to come!
Meredith Hodges Interview for the 2024 Hearts and Horses Gala Part 1
Part one of Meredith Hodge’s interview for the Hearts and Horses 2024 Gala. Lucky Three Ranch was a presenting sponsor for the Gala. Meredith talks about the importance of being of service.
Meredith Hodges Interview for the 2024 Hearts and Horses Gala Part 2
Part two of Meredith Hodge’s interview for the Hearts and Horses 2024 Gala. Meredith thanks those who join in supporting Hearts and Horses and talks about the importance of developing the positive in people.
Ground Breaking - Raising the Barn
Hearts and Horses broke ground on a new arena where they will continue to change lives through therapeutic riding. The new arena will be called Lucky Hearts, as much of the funding for the arena was given by Lucky Three Ranch.
Hearts & Horses Virtual Tour
Haven’t made it out to the Hearts & Horses ranch yet? Here’s your chance, thanks to our brand new virtual tour! Discover all of the state-of-the-art facilities designed to heal minds, bodies, and spirits at our 23-acre ranch in Loveland, Colorado.
Latest Podcast
MULE TALK! PODCAST: Donkeys As Livestock Guardians
Meredith Hodges – Lucky Three Ranch talks about: Donkeys As Livestock Guardians – Learn:
- How to Manage Jacks
- How to Work With Your Donkeys and Mules to Establish Boundaries
- Donkeys Don’t Necessarily Make Good Pets
- How to Protect Yourself from Aggressive Donkey Behavior
- Never Turn Your Back on Your Jack or Jenny Donks with Babies
- Using Herd Dogs to Protect Your Herd and more!!!
Learn more on Mule Talk podcast.
For more training info: www.LuckyThreeRanch.Com and click on the Training tab.
Mule Talk is an Every Cowgirl’s Dream production – www.EveryCowgirlsDream.Com
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MULE CROSSING: Training Longears: What’s the Difference? Part 2
In Part 1 of What’s the Difference? we began to define a few of the things that are unique to my training program. At the beginning of my career, it wasn’t long before I realized that, if I wanted to improve my skills and get a better response from my long-eared equine partners, I had to go back to the beginning, start over and pay close attention to what they needed from me at each stage of training in order to accurately perform what I was asking. When I did, ...
MULE CROSSING: Training Longears: What’s the Difference? Part 1
By Meredith Hodges At first glance, it seems those of us who train equines have very similar methods. This is not unusual considering we build our programs on time tested techniques and only make changes in approach when certain things are not working well. We often begin to interact with equines at a very young age and are the product of what we learn from others, and from our own mistakes. The things we learn shape our attitude and approach to riding equines, and riding is first and foremost in ...
MULE CROSSING: What’s So Special About Longears Shows?
By Meredith Hodges Many years ago, mules and donkeys were numerous in this country. Their strength and endurance made them ideal pack and work animals. Their contributions to the building of this great nation are unmatched, yet in 1966 their numbers had decreased to the point of near extinction. With the coming of the Industrial Revolution, their services were no longer in demand. Today the American Donkey and Mule Society celebrated its 20th anniversary. The society was formed by Paul and Betsy Hutchins of Denton, Texas, in 1967, in response ...
MULE CROSSING: The Road to Success with your Mule!
By Meredith Hodges When equines are trained in a logical, consistent and respectful way beginning with detailed lead line training, even “cycling females” is not a problem. Appropriate lessons need to have a logical beginning and be taught in a sequential fashion. The logical beginning in any athletic conditioning program should be to strengthen the core muscles that support bony columns. The length of the lesson and order in which lessons are presented facilitate strength and balance at the core. Adequate length of each stage of training and the way ...
MULE CROSSING: The Hourglass Pattern & The Elbow Pull
(A SELF-CORRECTING POSTURAL AID FOR EQUINES) Concept Developed by Richard Shrake and Specific Design by Meredith Hodges (Trademarked & Published in TRAINING WITHOUT RESISTANCE 2003) In my TRAINING MULES & DONKEYS DVD #2, in the TRAINING WITHOUT RESISTANCE manual (2003) and in the SPECIAL FEATURES of my EQUUS REVISITED DVD (2009), I talk about using a postural aid called the "Elbow Pull." In the EQUUS REVISITED DVD, we teach you how to measure it for your individual equine and how to make it. If you have our video series, in ...
MULE CROSSING: Using Dressage Training with Mules
By Meredith Hodges Why does Dressage training lend itself so well to training mules? In order to answer this question, we need to have a clear understanding of what Dressage really means and how it pertains to the mule’s mental and physical development in relationship to our own expectations. When most of us think of Dressage, we picture in our minds those elegant Lipizzaner stallions of the Spanish Riding School in Vienna, Austria. It’s easy to perceive Dressage as a more advanced form of Horsemanship, unless we realize that, in ...
MULE CROSSING: Riding Side Saddle
By Meredith Hodges Today, the concept of elegance has been greatly compromised by the fast pace of our open-minded society. Few of us have neither the time nor the inclination to do what is necessary to cultivate this concept as a major part of our lives. Women today have far too many jobs and responsibilities with which to cope without worrying about being elegantunless she lives in a densely populated urban area. There are just not a lot of places where a woman can practice being elegant. One of the ...
MULE CROSSING: Donkey Jacks
By Meredith Hodges A donkey jack can be your best friend or your worst enemy! Because he is a donkey, he possesses all the wonderful characteristics particular to donkeys—intelligence, strength, easy maintenance, suitability for many equine sports and, probably most important, an innate affectionate attitude. You must, however, realize that he is still an intact male, often governed by the hormones in his body. When nature takes over, the jack’s conscious thought is greatly diminished and he can become quite hazardous to your health. The jack’s aggressiveness is often masked ...
Sybil Ludington: The Female Paul Revere
This article is a repost of Valerie DeBenedette's article at Mental Floss. "… the midnight ride of Paul Revere, On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-Five: Hardly a man is now alive …" Yes, the famed Paul Revere set out on horseback on this day in 1775 to raise the alarm that British troops were on their way from Boston to Lexington. Revere rode about 20 miles through what is now Somerville, Medford, and Arlington, Massachusetts, knocking on doors to raise people to defend Lexington. Another rider, William Dawes, was sent by ...
MULE CROSSING: Looking Objectively at Your Equine
By Meredith Hodges Before most of us learn anything about horses, mules and donkeys, we tend to initially perceive them as large, strong and durable animals that can safely carry us anywhere we want to go and can participate in any number of equine events. This is essentially true. However, there can be a number of pitfalls along the way if you do not educate yourself and practice good maintenance, feeding and training practices. Equines, like people, are comprised of living tissue, bones, muscles and tendons that can often experience ...
Compassionate Training – A Historical Example
HAPPY NEW YEAR 2017! Let’s go forward loving and learning together with our equine companions! When kindness is used in training, greatness can happen. That is the story of Beautiful Jim Key. The sickly colt was adopted by “Dr” William Key, a freed slave and self-taught veterinarian. Using his veterinary skills and training with no force, the colt grew into a healthy adult with some special abilities - he could read, write, spell, do math, tell time, sort mail, cite Bible pas sages, use a telephone and cash register. Together, ...
MULE CROSSING: Understanding the Use of Cruppers and Breeching
By Meredith Hodges
- The purpose of tack and equipment has always been to give man comfort and leverage against the equine’s resistance during training, but I believe that the equine is “talking” with his resistance, and this is a cue to find another alternative to achieve harmony when something isn’t working.
- Trail Riding and Jumping are two activities where it is positively essential to do core postural training with your equine to solidify his symmetrical balance when in motion, or even standing still.
- The animal with deliberate foot placement ...
MULE CROSSING: Joining Up With Equines
By Meredith Hodges The first time I ever saw a horse, I was mesmerized by its beauty and the fluidity of its motion. Watching herds of horses on television as they galloped across the plains was like watching uniquely colored rainbows in motion. Their silky manes and tails floated behind them as they ran, and my heart soared with the promise of acquiring a sense of freedom like theirs. Their long, inviting backs beckoned me to ride! No doubt, many have experienced the same sensation while watching horses. But how ...
MULE CROSSING: Handling Your Mule’s Ears
By Meredith Hodges Just how sensitive is a mule about having his ears touched? If a mule is handled often and properly, he should be no more sensitive about his ears than he is about any other part of his body. However, if he is rarely handled, mishandled or handled roughly, he can become quite sensitive about any part of his body and in particular, his ears. Bearing this in mind, take the time to desensitize your mule to touch and handling by paying attention to how he likes to ...
MULE CROSSING: Organizing a Show
By Meredith Hodges Organizing an equine show is certainly no easy task, and it is certain that there will be problems to deal with along the way, but these problems do not need to be monumental if the people who are organizing the show clearly know the parameters of their particular jobs. It is also important that exhibitors know these duties, so that they can contact the proper person if a problem arises. Organization of a show begins with the show management committee who is responsible for the detailing of ...
Breeding
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Donkey Training
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Farewells
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General Interest
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Hearts & Horses
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Historical
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Interviews
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Jasper
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Longears People News
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Longears Videos
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Lucky Three Ranch
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Military Mules
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Mule Talk! Podcasts
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Pack Burro Racing
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Showing
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Statues & Exhibits
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Training
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Training Tips
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